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please help, I think I'm dying

Posted , 20 users are following.

JGoodman
JGoodman

I'm on the brink of phoning an ambulance, I'm 18, had a few drinks tonight and my heart keeps skipping beats and feels like it's stopping, I've had this before but i can't cope. My heart stops then makes me cough then my heart beats really fast. Have any of you got any advice, i genuinely feel like death is approaching me

1 like, 43 replies

43 Replies

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  • Chalky1991
    Chalky1991 JGoodman

    Posted

    Raff99 my symptoms come on at rest and whilst excercising which i find more scary as you heart is beating quicker and more powerfully it really ampilfies the ectopics and the pause. I have eased off on CV work for this reason, as i have been running and had it and thought i was going to die there and then out running in the country in the middle of no where. This is really scary and has now affeced me in where i go, i need to know where 24 hr medical care can be reached when i go away.

     

    • Raffa99
      Raffa99 Chalky1991

      Posted

      I can totally sympathise with what you are saying. I too get scared on my own especially when I am walking the dog miles from anywhere and no phone signal. The trouble is I think that now we are anxious, it makes the symptoms worse which then in turn makes us more anxious and then we are stuck in a loop. I would give anything to have a proceedure to put things right and go back to playing tennis and netball and joining in with things with my kids!

       

  • mira06665
    mira06665 JGoodman

    Posted

    heart palpitations (sounds like what you're discribing) can be normal and non life threatening. they can be stimulated by caffine, nicatine or alcohol. Usually they are related to stress or anxiety. they can feel like your heart is skipping a beat, beating too fast, or kind of a fluttering feeling. maybe you've never had them before or never noticed but i wouldnt worry about them  if they dont seem to cause a problem. deep breaths to relax will help them pass often
  • k3rivers
    k3rivers JGoodman

    Posted

    Hi,   Reading all of these posts should re assure you most likely you will not die with these episodes and once you can try to relax through them, you will see them not be so noticable.  Hang in there and join the ectopic clubsmile  Great we are all for each other as this post has hlped me personally more than anything!
  • rea666
    rea666 JGoodman

    Posted

    I spend all my days with my finger on my pulse because i think i am dying from afib n pals. They come from nowhere and bisop does very little. I beg to go into hospital as its 38 miles away. I know this will kill me . Im mentally a mess. I cant go on like it. I sometimes sleep in the A&E car park. Nobody takes me

    Seriously. Now im on warfarin but the odd beats are worse. Im so scared i cry all day. Dont drink or smoke. I hate it. Id give up everyrhing for a normal heart. Help me ...

    • derek76
      derek76 rea666

      Posted

      AF will not kill you. You have nothing to fear apart from the fear itself. Worry will certainly make your heart rate worse.
    • john96232
      john96232 rea666

      Posted

      Rea, I feel your pain, I have been exactly like you ove the past three or more years. I used to not like being alone incase I needed CPR and do what seems like now, crazy things in relation to my Ectopic beats.

      I hate them so much!

      I do however have a silver lining for you. For me, they started many years ago (10+). They seem to come and go with seasons, I think around now when its chaning from Autumn to Winter.

      Last year they were at their worst, I thought I couldnbt go on. I finally convinced my doctor to send me to a Cardiologist.

      My first apointment with him and after his quick examination (of which my ectopic beats were happeneing at the time) said "I think your perfectly fine, however it seems im going to have to proove it to you"

      He said he was going to give me a full heart MOT. Of course I still thought there would be somthing more suspect wrong with me all the way through the tests,

      I had a 48 Hour ECG, then an Echocardiogram, followed by an running test. You can look up all the tests, the ECG you probably already know, the Echocardiogram is ultrasound to see the hearts valves etc and the running test is being hooked up to an ecg whilst on a treadmill and checking blood presure at the same time.

      Whilst having all the tests, I had bouts of ectopic beats, I could see them on all the test results. I recived a letter soon after telling me I had a supremly normal heart and no furthur investigation was required.

      Soon after all the tests, I was feeling great, the ectopics subsided and eventually I had 8 months of pretty much forgetting about them. Now they are back, and as bad as ever! But this time im armed with knoledge.

      Im still freaking out at night, but keeping myself healthy in other ways and ocupying myself as best I can is getting me through it.

      The reason for telling you my personal medical tests are to ease your mind that you CAN have these awefull ectopic beats, whilst still being perfectly healthy.

      If you need to convince yourself, then keep on pushing your GP to get you through the tests and there is a high likelyhood that you too are perfectly healthy.

    • jerry16773
      jerry16773 john96232

      Posted

      I will remember your words in italics above-helps me cope. But, were your bouts with arrythmias lasting 40 minutes with a rapid herat rate also? Just wondered.
    • k3rivers
      k3rivers john96232

      Posted

      Thank-you John.

      I could have written your story as I have went through very similiar life.  I had alot of tests and 2 ablations and the monitors ultrasounds etc.  All pretty normal.  I exercise, eat really healthy, little alcohol.......... The ectopics are really trying to run my life. I remember how glorious life was without them. But we just go on the best we can.  Feel everyone has a cross to bear, and this is ours. Sometimes I get long stretches without them, then they are back "bad as ever." Just knowing there are so many out there like us, really helps. When I get really depressed, like now, I get on this forum and feel better.

      We are here for you, Ibiza.  You cannot give up hope. I pray a prominent EP doctor gets these and finds a cure asap!

    • k3rivers
      k3rivers ibiza666

      Posted

      You cannot give up!  We all have very similiar if not the same horrible symptoms, and we will ourselves to go on and try to ignore and find things (naturally) that help. Foods we eat, when we eat them, caffeine, alcohol, exercise etc. Research and bring back to this forum what helps you. My personal go to is to dissolve an Alka Seltzer when any arrythmia attack gets really bad. Keep posting!
  • jerry16773
    jerry16773 JGoodman

    Posted

    You are not alone. I can't figure out the "trigger". Had 45 minutes of this last eve which drove me nuts. What is this and it's causes?? Nice to know we're not alone. My brother has the same. You figure. It frustrates me that to this point docs haven't been able to figure me out, but when it happens it feels it IS serious. Doc wants to put me on a recorder for a month. Good idea, I guess. yeah, even the slightest exercise can bring these on. And I was once a half-marathon runner and good lifter. Now, if I would run 1/4 mile I could get some arrythmias. I don't get it. Know that we are here to support you and each other.
  • Penropennies
    Penropennies JGoodman

    Posted

    SVT is a fast regular beat but quite scary. You can learn to control these. There are some techniques to help but i am not familiar other than deep breathing exercises. If its irregular it could atrial fibrilation but that is uncommon in young people but possible. I myself get ectopic beats and AF as well, but i have learnt to relax and see it as annoyance rather than a huge problem. Even now the last 2 hours i have had a horrible run of ectopics but i am still quite relaxed. I do get treated for A fib though as it can be a oroblem if untreated.

    For you its best to get checked out anyway ok

  • susie74530
    susie74530 JGoodman

    Posted

    When this happens to you do you also have a "fluttering" feeling in your heart?  Sometimes these two symptoms coincide, sometime the "fluttering" comes out of nowhere, for no reason.  This is commonly called a "palpitation."  I would ask for an ecg to be run.  This will show a graph of how your heart is beating, and any unusual rhythms such as skipped heartbeat or additional heartbeats.  This is all due to electrical impulses within the heart, right side and left side.  

    Best to look into it, if you are worried, because worry will increase the symptoms - anxiety is well known to promote unusual behaviour of the heart.  

    A lot of this is adrenalin produced - worry/fright = flight or fright, a response from the heart will be a quickening of the heart rate, ready for flight!  

    Don't worry:  Alcohol will produce similar responses, it is a stiimulant, and you may be more sensitive to it than others.  So cut down on the alcohol, until you know what's what..

  • MikeyL
    MikeyL JGoodman

    Posted

    Greetings. I am glad I stumbled onto this discussion. I have been suffering from heart palpitations, on and off, for the last 5 years or so. I am 37. I have a history of anxiety, and have accepted this and taken measures to help myself... mindfulness/meditation. However, every now and then something happens that concerns me. - I can go a long while without palps or symptoms, and then all of the sudden they are back. Its almost like palpitation attacks that last for a few weeks to a month and then subside.  I can deal with PVC's and PAC's, but sometimes the palpitations will get very bad and frequent, creating a flurry of palpitations. Many skips per minute. I feels like my heart is jumping all over the place. My only remedy for this is to immediately head to the gym and run a few miles. This seems to reset the rhythm. Has anyone experienced this? Has anyone caught it on a monitor or had it diagnosed? My Mom has problems with her hearts electrical system, and I'm wondering if I might as well. - Thanks, in advance.
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